NICK Dougherty plans to add the Lancashire Amateur title to an already impressive CV when the 1999 championships get underway at Ormskirk tomorrow.

The Shaw Hill starlet is back on the domestic scene after spending the winter in America.

And he hopes to use tomorrow's event as a launch pad for an assault on the British Amateur Championships at Royal County Down next month.

"I'm really looking forward to it because I've never competed in the Lancashire Amateur Championships before," said Dougherty.

"I've been practising really hard and I've even been to the course for a couple of practice rounds.

"I love Ormskirk, it's a great course, and it should be the ideal preparation for the British Amateur Championships."

Dougherty, 16, spent the winter months at the Faldo Golf Institute in Orlando, Florida, in a bid to brush up on his game.

Nick Faldo himself passed on a few useful tips and it seems to be paying dividends as Dougherty's handicap has improved.

But he's also tightened up on his short game and looks leaner and meaner thanks to daily sessions with fitness instructor Dave Herman.

"It was brilliant. The facilities were great and Nick Faldo was constantly coming back and forth so I saw him for a few lessons," said Dougherty. "I've worked very hard on my game and it's brought me on in leaps and bounds.

"I spent five hours a day chipping and putting and you can't help but improve doing that.

"And I also worked hard on my fitness with Dave.

"He got me really into it and since then I've lost about half-a-stone."

Dougherty got straight back into the groove on his return to England by smashing the course record at Copt Heath with a 66 in the final round of the McEvoy Trophy where he finished third.

But he couldn't repeat that kind of form a couple of weeks later when he missed his first ever cut in the Brabazon Trophy.

"I didn't play too well in that. I shot a 76 in the first round even though I hit the ball quite well but I putted poorly.

"I thought I'd made it though after a 72 in the second round but there were a few good finishes and I ended up missing out by one shot.

"Obviously, I was disappointed but I've come back and sorted out my putting."

But that blip hasn't prevented him from being called up to the England team for the World Boys Championships in Japan next month. Last year, Dougherty was part of the England team which won the competition for the first time.

This summer, he flies out to the Far East as one of the senior members of the four-man team, hoping to secure a dream double.

"The whole trip is a fantastic experience and I can't wait to get out there.

"We've got a great team this year. It's a lot younger than last time but certainly as strong as the side I was part of before."

In the meantime, though, he is firmly focused on the task awaiting him at Ormskirk.

Top East Lancashire amateurs like Wilpshire's Tony Holt, Accrington's Trevor Foster, Nelson's Nick Uttley and Blackburn's Tony Jackson will all be vying for honours.

But Dougherty is also wary of Denton's Bob Bardsley and current champion Paul Williams.

The results of the competition will have a major influence on the selection of the six-man Lancashire side set to compete in the Northern Championship at Formby next month.

The Red Rose county will be looking to capitalise on home advantage in their quest to win back the title they last held four years ago at Carlisle when they went on to triumph in the English Finals at Silloth-on-Solway.

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